Knitted hosiery fabric and process of making same



J. A. ROSSAK 2,717,511

KNITTED HOSIERY FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING SAME Sept. 13, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 22, 1951 On Om Ow\ R HQHA wm w Qui l UT,-

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Sept. 13, 1955 .1. A. ROSSAK KNITTED HOSIERY FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING SAME! 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 22, 1951 WH H U H H H U U U H H IN VENTOR Jaw/Mm 4 FR 0 V M4K United States Patent O KNITTED HOSIERY FABR IC AND PROCESS 'OF MAKING SAME Johann Alfred Rossak, Fichtenberg Kreis, Backnang, Germany, assignor to ARWA Feinstrump'fwirkerei G. in. b. H., Backnang, Wurttemberg, Germany, a German corporation Application August 22, 1951, Serial No. 243,004 Claims priority, application'Germany 'September'G, 19 50 3 Claims. (Cl. 66- 169) This invention relates to a knitted hosiery fabric and process of making same, thefabric consisting of separate rows of stitches in which the yarn extends in the direction of the rows of stitches.

Such fabrics, which are referred to technologically as hosiery, can be produced on hosiery and knitting machines of various constructions. Without exception, it is common to the processes employed for this purpose that the stitches of a row, or the loops from which the stitches are constituted, are formed one after the other. In knitting machines (circular or flat knitting machines), the stitches of a row are successively formed by one knitting needle after the other being overlaid with yarn and the loop of yarn being drawn through that stitch of the previous row which is disposed on the needle. In hosiery machines, the loops of a row of stitches are successively formed by the sinking of the loops, by the fact that one jack sinker after the other pushes the yarn positioned in front of it through the needles adjacent it and forms the loop from which subsequently the stitch is formed.

The formation of the rows of stitches in accordance with these known methods takes considerable time; in addition, complicated devices are necessary for the actuation of the individually movable knitting needles or jack sinkers.

An object of the invention is to make it possible for the stitches or loops of one row of stitches to be produced simultaneously.

In accordance with the invention I provide a process for the manufacture of a knitted fabric of the hosiery type consisting of rows of stitches, characterised in that a stretchable yarn in an unstretched condition is laid in front of the needles of the knitting machine for the sinkers of the hosiery machine and the stitches, or loops of a row of stitches, are formed by simultaneous sinking of the portions of the yarn intended for the stitches of one row.

Preferably the sinkers jointly enter the gaps between the needles for the simultaneous sinking during the knitting operation.

The invention is also directed towards fabric produced by the instant process.

A stretchable yarn within the meaning of the invention is a yarn which, upon stretching, permits a permanent alteration in length of at least two to three times its original length. This is the case for example with yarns which consist of synthetic fibres of a material of the polyamide group and commercially nylon.

During the knitting, the simultaneous stretching is expediently effected by the sinkers passing simultaneously between the needles so that there is a considerable shortening of the time required for the operation. With knitted goods or hosiery produced in accordance with the invention, the yarns from which the individual stitches are formed may have a varying cross-section within the same stitch, whereby the article is less liable to ladder.

One manner of manufacture in accordance with the 2,7 17,5 1 l Patented Sept. 13, 1955 "ice present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

The drawing diagrammatically illustrates a section of hose-consisting of separate rows of stitches and also the loop-:sinking'operation in theproduct-ion of the article on the hosiery 'machine, and also constructional examples according to the known art and to the invention.

In .the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows the known hosiery,

Fig. 2 the loop formation on hosiery machines,

fig. 3 "the hosiery loops produced by the sinking opera- -tion,

' Fig. 4 the dividing of the loops,

Fig. 5 the positioning of an unstretched yarn,

Fig. 6 the loop formation by stretching the yarn,

Fig.- 7 a phase of the knitting operation in which the loops-formed by the stretching of the yarn have not yet passed through the stitches of the preceding row of stitches.

Fig. 8 the completed new stitches still on the needles, and

Fig. '-9 the new fa-bric made according to the invention.

' :As will be seen from Fig. '1, the yarn in the known hosiery has the samecross-sectionthroughout. The rows of stitches '1, '2, 3 are formed one after the other. The

loop's'o'f one row of stitches from which the stitches are formed during the knitting operation are likewise successively produced, this taking place in the manner shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. As shown in these figures, the yarn 4 is placed between the needles 5 on one side and the jack sinkers 6 and the dividers 7 on the other side. Thereupon the yarn is formed into loops by each separate jack sinker 6 being pushed through the gap disposed between the two needles 5 associated therewith (Fig. 2). The increased consumption of yarn resulting from the deformation of the previously stretched yarn into loops is supplied from the free yarn end 8. A stretching of the thread does not take place in this case. It is essential however that one loop or stitch after the other is sunk or knitted, as actually takes place in all the known hosiery machines and knitting machines.

When the loop-sinking is completed (Fig. 3), the sunk loops each extending over two needles 5 are deformed to form loops which each pass over one needle 5 (Fig. 4) by the dividers 7 being pushed altogether in known manner simultaneously between the needles associated with them. During this operation, the sinkers 6 are retracted to approximately the same extent as that to which the dividers are pushed between the needles, so that from a loop originally passing over two needles, there are now produced two, each of which only lies over one needle 5 (Fig. 4).

In the process according to the invention, it is no longer necessary for the sinkers to be moved individually. In addition, the dividing operation is no longer required. A stretchable yarn consisting, for example, of a material of the polyamide group is positioned between the needles 5 on the one side and the sinkers 9 on the other side (Fig. 5). Thereupon the sinkers 9, which may be fixed in a common comb 10, are simultaneously forced between their associated needles and thus the previously stretched yarn 4 is sunk to form loops (Fig. 6).

The necessary compensation in yarn length is thus no longer effected by additional consumption, as hitherto, but by a permanent change in length of the yarn which is caused by the sinking step and which is suflicient for the loop formation.

Since the racked loops each pass over one needle 5 it is no longer necessary to carry out a subsequent dividing operation. The loops (Fig. 7) depending from the needles can immediately be formed into stitches in the usual manner and, upon completion of the row, hang on the needles (Fig. 8) in exactly the same manner as the stitches worked according to the known methods.

The knitted fabric produced in accordance with the invention has substantially the same appearance as that of normal hosiery. It also has the same properties as regards extensibility and elasticity. However, due to the fact that there are alterations in the cross-section of the yarn within the individual stitches, produced by the racking of the loops (Fig. 9), the fabric is considerably less subject to laddering than the normal hosiery. It is not only cheaper to produce than the normal hosiery, but is also of better quality in use.

The invention is not restricted to the embodiment described, but can be used successfully anywhere where operation steps previously carried out in succession can be united into a single operation by the racking of the yarn.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A method for the manufacture of a knitted fabric of the hosiery type comprising positioning a stretchable yarn in its non-stretched state between the rows of alternatingly spaced needles and sinkers of a knitting machine, simultaneously entering the sinkers into the gaps between the needles and for a certain distance beyond the same, forming thereby from said stretchable yarn adjacent loopshaped rows of stitches, the sinkers entering the gaps between the needles for a simultaneous stretching of said yarn during the knitting operation.

2. A method for the manufacture of a knitted fabric of the hosiery type comprising positioning stretchable yarn in its non-stretched state between the rows of alternatingly spaced needles and sinkers of a knitting machine, jointly entering the sinkers into the gaps between the needles for a certain distance beyond the same, forming thereby from said stretchable yarn adjacent loop-shaped rows of stitches, the sinkers jointly entering the gaps between the needles for a simultaneous stretching of said yarn during the knitting operation and imparting to the stitch forming portions of the yarn a diameter which differs from the diameter of the residual yarn portions.

3. A knitted fabric of the hosiery type consisting of adjacent rows of stitches which are composed of loopshaped and of lateral shank forming portions the latter connecting said loop-shaped portions, the yarn in said shank forming portions having a smaller diameter than that in said loop-shaped portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,303,593 Quinn May 13, 1919 1,514,623 La Montagne Nov. 11, 1924 1,787,264 Goldberg Dec. 30, 1930 2,186,572 Boepple Jan. 9, 1940 2,187,715 Waechtler Ian. 23, 1940 2,194,271 Adams Mar. 19, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS 605,594 France May 28, 1926 611,084 Great Britain Oct. 25, 1948 

